624 Reviews — Report of Geological Commission — 



and is mostly dark, especially in the coarser varieties, wliicli some- 

 times have a green tinge. The fine-grained variety is always light- 

 coloured, var3nng from white to light shades of pink and violet. 

 Along the north shore of Michikamau Lake, where the rock is very- 

 coarse-grained, many of the crystal faces show a beautiful iridescent 

 play of colour, in shades of green, blue, and bronze-yellow " (p. 230). 

 This precious luhradorite is again mentioned at page 289. 



Appendix I, by A. P. Low, consists of a scientific list of the 

 Mammalia of Labrador; Appendix II, of the birds; III, of the 

 principal food fishes; IV, of the Insects, by Dr. James Fletcher. 

 Appendix V contains Mr. W. Ferrier's notes on the microscopic 

 structure of thirty-four rocks from Labrador ; Appendix VI is an 

 elaborate tabular and classified catalogue by J. M. Macoun of the 

 known plants of Labrador ; Appendix VII is D. V. Eaton's 

 Meteorological Observations in the Peninsula in 1893-5. 



Report R, by Dr. G. Ch. Hoffman and his Assistants, F. G. Wait 

 and R. A. A. Johnston, exhibits such portion of the work carried out 

 in the Laboratory of the Survey as is of special or general interest. 

 It contains among other matter references to several interesting 

 and some valuable minerals new to Canada, as Hessite, Petzite, 

 Stromeyerite, Bismite, and Smithsonite. 



Lastly, the Annual Report for 1895, for Mineral Statistics and 

 Mines, by E. D. Ingall and L. L. Brophy, 1896. The Mineral Pro- 

 duction of Canada for 1894 is valued at 20,950,000 dollars ; and for 

 1895 at 22,000,000 dollars ; the increase being due chiefly to copper, 

 gold, lead, platinum, and silver. Some comparative, diagrammatic 

 tables, showing the relative production of asbestos, coal, iron, phos- 

 phate, gold, and salt, for a series of years, enhance the value of the 

 numerous numerical tables relating to these and other mineral pro- 

 ducts. A good Index, as usual, completes the volume of reports. 



T. R. J. 



V. — First Annual Report of the Geological Combiission of 

 THE Cape of Good Hope for 1896. (Cape Town, 1897.) 



rpHE First Annual Report of the Geological Commission of Cape 

 jL Colony, now to hand, will be welcomed by all interested in 

 South African Geology. 



At present the staff is very small, consisting only of three members. 

 There are two Assistant Geologists, Messrs, A. W. Rogers and E. H. L. 

 Schwarz, while Dr. Corstorphine gives his partial services as Geologist. 



Besides the record of field-work for 1896, the Report includes an 

 account of the Cango Caves, and reports on the Laingsburg Coal, and 

 of the subcommittee on deep artesian well-borings. The publication 

 of the Geological Map of the area so far surveyed, on the scale of 

 800 Cape roods to the inch (half an inch to the mile), with detailed 

 accounts of the work done, will be looked forward to with interest. 



During the year 1896 large portions of the following districts have 

 been mapped by Messrs. Rogers and Schwarz : Cape, Stelleabusch, 



